To research attention, the test ad is shown with control ads in a clutter free environment designed to simulate a commercial "pod" [clarification needed][definition needed]on television. The test ad is embedded in clutter made up of either directly competitive advertising, or ads from non-competing product categories, depending on client preference. After watching the reel, respondents are asked the question "Which of these ads did you find interesting?"

If the test ad is spontaneously mentioned, then that response is counted toward the attention score.[1]